Times are especially hard for Andrew Shanahan-Smith, who runs Club Epic in the middle of the Dorset town of Christchurch. Unfortunately for him, three years ago he decided to open his club in the local authority with the oldest population in England and Wales – at least according to the 2011 census.

Shanahan-Smith laughs heartily at the news that at 30%, the town has the largest proportion of over-65s of any local authority in the country.

"Maybe I should have an over-65s night then? It might make my business better than what it is."

He adds that at 53, he might be one of the oldest nightclub owners around. "I still feel like 25, mind you."

"You do get the odd older person come in", but his cliental is mainly between 25 and 40s, he says.

Has he thought about an over-65s night? "Tea dancing nights with cucumber sandwiches and cups of tea? Even if I tried I doubt they would come in. Opposite me is the Conservative club and 100 yards on the same road as me is the Royal Legion, so that generation go to those sorts of places."

The local nursery tells a different story.

For a town in which 7,600 residents, or one in six, are over 75, business at Burton day nursery is booming, according to the manager, Rosie Coleman, 45.

It has gone from 30 places to more than 100 since the last census in 2001. "We're inundated," she says.

"To be quite honest, the snapshot gives a completely false sense [of what Christchurch is like].".

With Bournemouth beach and the New Forest all within 20 minutes, she says, "it is just generally a great place to live", attracting people of all ages. "The only downside is that the property prices are high.

"You don't generally see an awful lot of older people around to be quite honest. There's the same facilities for the young as there are for the old.

"But," she adds, "any population will have an increasing amount of old people because they are living longer. We might have been highlighted this time around but it's going to be happening everywhere."